ISTANBUL, March 7 (Reuters) - Turkey's president on Friday ruled out a ban on Facebook and YouTube after Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan threatened such a move to stop political foes posting audio recordings purportedly exposing government corruption.

"The closure of them is out of the question," Abdullah Gul told reporters when asked about Erdogan's comments, adding that under a recently passed law authorities could block access to material on such sites if a person's privacy is violated.